Little Shop Of Horrors

Little Shop Of Horrors is a rock musical by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman. The music, composed by Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop and early Motown, includes several show-stoppers including the title song, “Skid Row (Downtown)”, “Somewhere That’s Green”, and “Suddenly, Seymour”.

The musical had its world premiere on May 6, 1982 at the WPA Theatre. It opened off-Broadway at the Orpheum Theatre on July 27, 1982. When it closed on November 1, 1987, after 2,209 performances, it was the third-longest running musical and the highest-grossing production in off-Broadway history. The musical was also made into a 1986 film of the same name, directed by Frank Oz and starring Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Steve Martin, and Bill Murray.

In addition to the original long-running 1982 off-Broadway production and subsequent Broadway production, the musical has been performed all over the world. Because of its small cast and relatively simple orchestrations, it has become popular with community theatre, school and other amateur groups.

Seymour Krelbourn is a poor young man working at a run-down flower shop on skid row when he encounters a miracle. He discovers an alien plant after a total eclipse of the sun. After bringing the plant to the store, he gains fame, fortune, and love. The only defect is that the plant feeds on human blood. Seymour and the plant make a deal that if the plant continues to bring Seymour positive attention, he will in turn continue to feed the plant human bodies. Eventually, the evil plant eats Seymour and his close friends and acquaintances.